PlayaBrewery

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I have been growing hops in my yard for about five years. All of the bines that are within ten feet of the two giant palm trees have struggled to grow and produced no flowers. I want to move them but am not sure if it is better to do it now, as the bines have died to the ground, or wait until they have just started to shoot in the spring. Or is there a better time then either of those. Please tell me what you have experienced with rhizome moves.

david_42

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Now is fine, if your ground isn't frozen. If you wait until Spring, move them as soon as the ground thaws.

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growinghops

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Anytime during relative dormancy (between bines dying back and hop shoots emerging will work fine). The hop crowns are gathering and storing energy until the ground freezes. Doing it now will lessen the chance of disturbing new growth in the spring. Hop plants are very hardy and will survive some trauma during the move.

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Growing Hops

StAnthonyB

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Ground frozen? Nevermind the hops. The man has palm trees. How in the world does someone have palm trees and hops?! Isn't that an unfair advantage.

You might consider putting the hops on the northside of the house so that they are shaded and receive more chill (stay dormant longer). The longer a plant stays dormant from the winter the more vigorous the growth spurt once it happens. If the you still are not receiving flowers then try to induce them using a bloom fertillizer.

A long winter dormancy generally produces higher quality fruits and flowers. This is certainly true about stone fruits and grapes. I would imagine it might be true for hops being a bine. I am about to embark on the hop growing this spring, but I have found the choice rhizome sellers tend to be sold out before the long winters here are out. Our last frost (ice storm) this past year was in July although it is typically around the first week of June. Our first real snow fall was in mid-September. I suppose it was just a cooler than average year.

I suppose that poises a good question for the researchers.

PlayaBrewery

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Palm trees line the street, Pacific ocean a block away, Redwoods on the high school campus where I work, and hops. I need to remind myself sometimes. No positioning will stop my hops from shooting up after April. I have them all over my yard. I will move the crowns that are competing with the palm trees this week. And I will report back next Fall when I know how much (if any) hops I harvest from the moved plants. Thanks all for your sage advise npi